Miami-based MealPal raises $15 million in venture capital

MealPal, a lunchtime meal service, has raised $15 million in Series A funding.

| 2/16/2017

NEW YORK, NY — MealPal, the subscription service that provides members with affordable daily lunch options from restaurants near where they live or work, today announced a $15 million Series A fundraise, and an expansion overseas to London. The fundraising was led by Comcast Ventures, the venture capital affiliate of Comcast Corporation, with participation from Bessemer Venture Partners, Haystack Partners, and NextView Ventures.

Through MealPal, hundreds of restaurants – both large and small – offer one dish per day to subscribing members. Using a website or mobile app, members can browse meals available at restaurants near them, filter meals by cuisine and portion size, and preorder the night before or in the morning, choosing a time to pick up their lunch and skip those annoying lunch lines. A bot helps subscribers hone in on the cuisines they most enjoy.

The fundraising will accelerate MealPal’s growth, with today’s launch in London marking the company’s eighth city and first international market. MealPal debuted in Miami, its first market, in January 2016 and has since launched in Boston, New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Philadelphia, and San Francisco. The service has facilitated over 1 million reservations for lunch since January of 2016 with thousands of restaurants now participating.

“London is famous for being a melting pot of food and flavor,” said co-founder & CEO Mary Biggins. “With MealPal you can enjoy the city’s unparalleled food culture and discover something new every day without worrying about breaking the bank.” More than 125 London eating establishments have thus far signed on to offer specially prepared lunches via the service in the city and Soho — at a price as low as £4.39/meal.

“MealPal has built an exciting business in the huge, but overlooked meal takeout space, using technology to create a win-win for consumers and restaurants,” said Daniel Gulati of Comcast Ventures. “Their early traction has been outstanding, and we could not be more excited to partner with Mary and the team.”

“It’s exciting to see this creative new platform launching in London’s lunch market,” says Eric Partaker, founder and CEO of London lunchtime favorite Chilango. “It’s a busy time for all of us and we’re looking forward to sharing our stampede of Mexican flavours and this convenient service with working professionals in London.”

MealPal is a subscription service that provides members with hundreds of lunch choices around where they live or work for a flat, monthly fee. Users can discover new restaurants and save money, while restaurants can increase revenue during their busiest hour of the day. MealPal was founded in 2016 by Mary Biggins and Katie Ghelli and has facilitated more than 1 million reservations for lunch in its inaugural year. It is currently available in New York City, San Francisco, Miami, Boston, Chicago, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, and now London.